A Home Designed Straight from a Novel

Walking through an artfully designed home can feel akin to reading a good book: There’s a structure, a theme and, in the best work, compelling details that grab your attention and tell a captivating story as you make your way through. Looking to write an autobiography of his own, a Newport Coast client who wished for a gracious residence where his children and grandchildren could gather turned to interior designer Jan Turner Hering and architect Richard Krantz to take on the narrative. Of her part, Turner Hering says, “We took a soft contemporary approach to Richard’s classic text,” which translated into a home replete with rectilinear lines, subdued pattern and soft colors.

Guiding Krantz’s architectural text was the owner’s request for a home inspired by his stays at luxury hotels and resorts around the world, so he crafted a bright and airy floor plan with a central courtyard, a large pool and generous outdoor living and dining areas. The lower level includes a spacious game room complete with a pinball machine and game table, as well as a wine cellar, spa and gym that manifest an on-vacation vibe.

Though the four members of the design team all had a hand in the final story (not to mention the numerous subcontractors required to execute such a project), the home reads as the story of the client. It tells of his hopes and the lifestyle he desired, giving him a fairy-tale ending. “We created something so unique in itself,” says Turner Hering, “it’s like checking into the most glorious hotel on the coast.”

–Linda Hayes